LogFAQs > #972209213

#20 - Tala
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Of immediate note, Tala's art seems remarkably incongruous to the rest of the campaign's more obvious comic book fare. That's entirely intentional, as Tala in comics hasn't had relevance since the 1950s, despite her notable appearances in Justice League Unlimited. My take on the character is entirely inspired by her - a lieutenant with aspirations for power, but power that lurks behind the throne. Tale enjoys being visible but detests the responsibilities of leadership. In many ways she's a mewling coward, but with a powerful leader to serve as a buffer, she can present as extremely cocky and arrogant.

The beautiful mistress of the night first came upon the scene in the Cinque, as leader of a facility devoted to bizarre and cruel experimentations designed to test the limits of the Equation for the Society. But Tala also revealed that her efforts were designed to study and understand the Equation as it relates to her true master, Eclipso. Tala is a traitor, an insider within the wide umbrella of the Society, focused on undermining them at every turn. Now, usually, a traitor to the Society is something the party can work with - a questioning young commander like Nite-Wing, for example, or an all-out defector like the Crime Doctor - but Tala's disloyalty only leads to an even more remarkably dismal master. Hell, she even converted a minor but somewhat beloved Campaign 1 returnee, Ballistic, into one of the Eclipsed, right before the party's eyes, just to show that she can.

At the end of a gauntlet that focused on the rescued of innocent children from Tala's clutches, the party likely expected a large final battle - instead, they held back, refused to engage, and in fact played the diplomats. An unexpected move, to be sure, and one that had them dabbling in the knowledge that Tala was so unbothered by their presences that she dared them to take the children and leave - Tala and her ilk, including such luminaries as Blue Devil's own brother, couldn't have been less intimidated by the party. She taunted them, mocked them, and bade them farewell.

That sort of power, that confidence, deflated the party in a big way. Tala just outclassed them without lifting a finger. Sporting just a few tantalizing bits of knowledge for our prison-busting crew, I think this dark sorceress, cold, sexy, cruelly beautiful, set herself up as a strong secondary antagonist for the campaign moving forward. This block of sessions has been about beginning to draw the net tighter - recurring enemies, closer-knit connections between storylines... things are coming together. As they do, a character like Tala will begin to step into the limelight in a big way. I can't wait.

Hint: Roses are red.